Primary cilia are organelles present on most mammalian cells that sense environmental changes and transduce signaling, and they are the key coordinators of various signaling pathways during tissue development. This article reviews the progress of research on the distribution of primary cilia in tooth development and the related signaling pathways. A literature review shows that in odontogenesis, primary cilia play an important role in the mutual induction of the epithelium and mesenchyme; during the continuous proliferation and differentiation of cells, the distribution of primary cilia is temporally and spatially dependent. Although the reason for this distribution is still unclear, some experimental evidence indicates that this phenomenon is compatible with the function of cells and tissues in which primary cilia are distributed. Primary cilia are involved in the regulation of two important signaling pathways, Hedgehog and Wnt, in odontogenesis. Genes encoding cilia (such as Kif3a, Evc/Evc2 and Ift) can affect the development of teeth by regulating these two signaling pathways, and there is an interaction between the two signaling pathways. Deletion of related genes (such as Ofd1 and Bbs) can damage the transmission of upstream and downstream signals by damaging the structure or function of cilia, thereby causing various types of dental dysplasia, including small teeth, enamel hypoplasia, missing teeth, or craniofacial deformities.
